Related Guides on this Topic
You may also want to see these guides on related topics: Tribal Human Services
Introduction
All federally recognized tribes are sovereign entities
that share a unique government-to-government relationship with
the U.S. government. A combination of numerous treaties, court
cases, and legislative decisions has obligated the federal government
to provide health care services to American Indians and Alaska
Natives. However, striking health disparities exist in Native American
populations. For example, 73% of Native Americans reside in Federally
Designated Health Professional Shortage Areas, and the average
life expectancy of Native Americans is four years lower than that
of the general U.S. population. The conditions in the poorest reservations
often approach those of third world nations. The resources below
provide specific information on tribal health disparities, as well
as funding sources and tools that can be used to help improve health
care and human services for Native Americans.
Sources: Minorities
in Rural America, South Carolina Rural Health Research Center,
2002; Facts
on Indian Health Disparities, Indian Health Service, 2005.
Frequently Asked Questions
Tools
American Indian & Alaska Native (AI/AN) Populations
Web site
Provides overviews of health and related statistics for American Indian and Alaska Native populations. Also offers brochures, slideshows, funding sources, and a variety of external web links.
American Indian and Alaska Native Programs
Web site
Works to promote the health and well-being of American Indians and Alaska Natives through research, training, continuing education, technical assistance, and information dissemination.
American Indian and Alaska Native SIDS Risk Reduction Resource Kit
Print publication
Describes a toolkit of culturally appropriate materials health care professionals and health educators can use to help prevent Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) in Native communities. Available to order for free.
American Indian Disability Technical Assistance Center
Technical assistance
Provides information and technical assistance to American Indian tribes and Alaska Native villages that helps their members with disabilities live healthy, integrated lives within their communities.
American Indian Health
Web site
Provides links to a variety of resources on issues related to American Indian health and well-being. Includes information on health care access, specific health conditions, and environmental health.
American Indian/Alaska Native Center
Web site
Contains links to information about American Indian/Alaska Native health and Medicare & Medicaid services.
Arctic Health
Web site
Serves as an information portal to issues affecting the health and well-being of northern-most inhabitants including Alaska Natives.
Cancer Health Disparities
Web site
Cancer statistics for African American, Hispanic/Latino, Asian/Pacific Islander, and American Indian/Alaska Native populations. Includes information on NCI research activities related to cancer health disparities.
Center for American Indian Health: Training Opportunities
Web site
Training opportunities for American Indian researchers.
IHS Fact Sheets
Web site
Offers information on specific healthcare topics concerning American Indian and Alaska Natives. Covers health disparities, treaties and laws, statistics and more.
Index of Native American Non-Profit Resources on the Internet
Web site
Extensive links to Native American non-profits and sources of funding for Native America programs.
Indian Health Service Loan Repayment Program
Database
Contains information on the IHS Loan Repayment Program for health professionals committed to practice at an IHS or other Indian health program.
MedlinePlus: Native American Health
Web site
Contains links to resources related to Native American health; including organizations, statistics, and publications.
National Indian Country Methamphetamine Initiative
Web site
Serves as a national advertisement campaign against methamphetamine in Indian Country.
Native American Calling
Web site
Serves as a live call-in program that links public radio stations, the Internet, and listeners together and covers issues specific to Native communities. Call toll-free 1-800-996-2848.
Native American Cancer Research
Web site
Offers resources and research on Native American cancer.
Native American Elderly Service Centers
Web site
Displays a nationwide, interactive map that shows the location of Native elderly services. Map provides the name of the location, which leads to the address, contact information, and lists the services provided.
Native Elder Services Locator Project
Web site
Is a nationwide interactive map that shows the location of Native elderly health and human services in specific communities.
Native Health Database
Database
Includes citations and abstracts of health-related articles, reports, surveys, and other resource documents pertaining to the health and health care of American Indians, Alaska Natives, and Canadian First Nations.
Rural Health Research: American Indians and Alaska Natives
Web site
Provides summaries of current and completed rural health research projects and related publications addressing the topic of American Indians and Alaska Natives, produced by the Office of Rural Health Policy's funded rural health research centers.
Tribal Connections
Web site
Provides links and information on community health, cultural resources, funding, and government assistance for American Indians/Alaskan Natives.
Regulations, Forms & Other Useful Documents
AHRQ Research and Other Activities Relevant to American Indians and Alaska Natives- Update 2007
Sponsoring organization: Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality
Describes AHRQ activities relevant to the American Indians and Alaska Natives population.
Date: 02 / 2007
American Indian and Alaska Native Early Childhood Health, Development, and Education Research
Author(s): Patricia Cahape Hammer, William G. Demmert, Jr.
Sponsoring organization: Edvantia
Reviews research focused on early childhood issues in American Indian and Alaska Native health, development, and education.
Date: 12 / 2003
American Indian and Alaska Native Health Issue Paper
Sponsoring organization: National Rural Health Association
Detailed overview of American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) health issues. Includes a history of health service provision by the federal government. Provides policy recommendations.
Date: 11 / 2006
American Indians and Alaska Natives and Tobacco
Sponsoring organization: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Statistics related to tobacco-related health effects and tobacco use in the American Indian/Alaska Native populations.
Date: 10 / 2000
American Indians/Alaska Natives and Cardiovascular Diseases
Sponsoring organization: American Heart Association
Reports, through graphs and bulleted statements, the incidence of cardiovascular diseases in the American Indian and Alaska Native populations.
Date: 2008
American Indians/Alaskan Natives and Lung Disease
Sponsoring organization: American Lung Association
Provides statistics on the prevalence of lung disease in the American Indian/Alaska Native populations.
Date: 01 / 2007
Arthritis in American Indian and Alaska Native Elders
Author(s): Leander (Russ) McDonald, Richard Ludtke, Alan Allery, Kyle Muus
Sponsoring organization: National Resource Center on Native American Aging
Discusses arthritis prevalence and its impact on the health of American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) elders.
Date: 2006
Ask the Experts: American Indian/Alaska Native Health
Author(s): Charles Grim, Jim Crouch, Yvette Roubideaux
Sponsoring organization: Kaiser Family Foundation
Transcript and video of a 9/27/04 webcast examining the state of health and health care in the American Indian/Alaska Native (AI/AN) population, funding for AI/AN health care programs, and efforts to improve AI/AN health, and access to other health care resources. Includes discussion of how to meet the unique needs of both rural and urban populations.
Date: 09 / 2004
Assessing American Indian Long-term Care Needs
Author(s): Steven P. Wallace, William F. Benson, Richard Ludtke, Leander McDonald, Margaret Moss, Yvonne Jackson
Sponsoring organization: Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality
Overviews existing information on long-term care needs of American Indian elders and resources available to help tribes identify their long-term care needs.
Broken Promises: Evaluating the Native American Health Care System
Sponsoring organization: U.S. Commission on Civil Rights
Describes the health disparities facing the Native American community, contributing barriers to health care access, and recommendations for improvement.
Date: 09 / 2004
Disaster Preparedness Training for Tribal Leaders
Author(s): Wayne F. Peate, Jennie Mullins
Describes a disaster preparedness training program for tribal leaders conducted in Arizona. Discusses the role of cultural competency, respect for tribal sovereignty, solicitation of historical examples of indigenous preparedness, and incorporation of tribal community networks in the success of the program.
Journal citation: Journal of Occupational Medicine and Toxicology Volume 3 Issue 2
Date: 01 / 2008
Elders' Obesity Challenge
Author(s): Leander McDonald, Richard Ludtke, Alan Allery, Kyle Muus
Sponsoring organization: National Resource Center on Native American Aging
Overviews obesity rates among Native American elders. Includes statistics by age group and gender.
Date: 09 / 2005
Faststats: Health of American Indian or Alaska Native Population
Sponsoring organization: National Center for Health Statistics
Contains health-related statistics for the American Indian or Alaska Native population. Statistics include: population, live births, health status, health risk factors, access to health care, mortality rates, and more.
Date: 2007
Grants and Funding Information for American Indian/Alaska Native Researchers
Author(s): Martha L. Means
Sponsoring organization: University of Washington
Guide to finding and obtaining funding for Native American health research.
Date: 02 / 2002
Health Insurance Coverage and Access to Health Care for American Indian and Alaska Native Elders
Sponsoring organization: Upper Midwest Rural Health Research Center
Reports findings from a study assessing health insurance coverage and access to health care among American Indian and Alaska Native elders (Native elders), using data from a national survey that included more than 8,300 Native elders.
Date: 10 / 2007
HIV/STD Prevention Guidelines for Native American Communities: American Indians, Alaska Natives, and Native Hawaiians
Sponsoring organization: Rural Center for AIDS/STD Prevention
Provides a framework to create HIV/STD prevention programs tailored to Native Americans, reflecting the unique culture of Native communities and a starting point for program development at the local level.
Date: 2004
Hypertension in American Indian and Alaska Native Elders
Author(s): Kyle Muus
Sponsoring organization: National Resource Center on Native American Aging
Outlines the prevalance of hypertension among the American Indian and Alaska Native population as identified through studies. Uses text and graphs to display information by age, gender, and disease.
Date: 08 / 2008
If You Knew the Conditions…: Health Care to Native Americans
Sponsoring organization: National Library of Medicine
Summarizes the history of U.S. government health initiatives and biographies of famous Native American physicians. This is an online version of a 1994 exhibit on Native American Health.
Date: 1994
Indian Health Service Facts on Indian Health Disparities
Sponsoring organization: Indian Health Service
Provides statistics on Indian health disparities and mortality disparities.
Date: 06 / 2008
Indian Health Service: Health Care Services Are Not Always Available to Native Americans
Sponsoring organization: Government Accountability Office
Examines the availability of primary care including medical, dental and vision, as well as certain ancillary and specialty services to Native Americans. Discusses factors associated with the availability of services.
Date: 08 / 2005
Legal and Historical Roots of Health Care for American Indians and Alaska Natives in the U.S.
Author(s): Brett Lee Shelton
Sponsoring organization: Kaiser Family Foundation
Overviews the history of health care provision to American Indians and Alaska Natives (AI/AN). Includes a timeline of legislative and historical events as well as detailed overview of the laws, federal agencies, and issues involved. Also includes a brief section on current issues in AI/AN health care.
Date: 02 / 2004
National Trends in the Perinatal and Infant Health of Rural American Indians (AIs) and Alaska Natives (ANs): Have the Disparities Between AI/ANs and Whites Narrowed?
Sponsoring organization: WWAMI Rural Health Research Center
Summarizes findings from a study examining trends in prenatal care receipt, low-birthweight rates, neonatal and postneonatal death rates, and cause of death among rural American Indians/Alaska Natives (AI/ANs) and whites between 1985 and 1997.
Date: 09 / 2007
Nearly Half of Urban American Indians and Alaskan Natives Travel Back to Their Reservation to Visit During the Year
Sponsoring organization: Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality
Briefly overviews a study of American Indians and Alaska Natives (AI/ANs) who live in cities and travel to reservations, and how this travel may be related to health.
Date: 01 / 2006
Nutritional Risks Among Native American Elders
Author(s): Leander McDonald, Richard Ludtke
Sponsoring organization: National Resource Center on Native American Aging
Discusses nutritional risks of Native American elders. Includes information on social and chronic disease factors that relate to nutritional risk.
Date: 04 / 2005
Perinatal and Infant Health Among Rural and Urban American Indians/Alaska Natives
Author(s): Laura-Mae Baldwin, David C. Grossman, Susan Casey, Walter Hollow, Jonathan R. Sugarman, William L. Freeman, L. Gary Hart
Sponsoring organization: WWAMI Rural Health Research Center
Provides a national profile of rural and urban American Indian/Alaska Native (AI/AN) maternal and infant health.
Journal citation: American Journal of Public Health Volume 92 Issue 9 Pages: 1491-1497
Date: 09 / 2002
Quality Matters: Quality Improvement in the Indian Health Service
Author(s): Vida Foubister
Sponsoring organization: Commonwealth Fund
Describes how the Indian Health Service' federal, tribal, and urban health facilities have been making strides in quality improvement.
Date: 11 / 2008
Review of the Quality of Health Care for American Indians and Alaska Natives
Author(s): Yvette Roubideaux
Sponsoring organization: Commonwealth Fund
Documents health care disparities for American Indians and Alaska Natives (AI/ANs) and reports on progress made in the last five years to reduce or eliminate gaps in care. Discusses changes to the AI/AN health care infrastructure and new quality initiatives.
Date: 09 / 2004
Risk and Protective Factors for Substance Use among American Indian or Alaska Native Youths
Sponsoring organization: Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration
Compares the risk and protective factors for substance abuse of American Indian or Alaska Native youths with youths from other racial/ethnic groups.
Date: 09 / 2004
Risk Factors for Chronic Disease and Injury Vary Greatly by Region and Sex Among American Indians and Alaskan Natives
Sponsoring organization: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Overviews the differences among American Indians and Alaska Natives, by geographic region and sex for three health risk factors: current cigarette smoking, awareness of having diabetes, and not wearing a seatbelt.
Date: 02 / 2000
Services in Native American Communities
Author(s): Beth Stroul
Sponsoring organization: National Technical Assistance Center for Children's Mental Health
Summarize issues and challenges related to services in Native American communities and identifies effective service delivery strategies.
Date: 07 / 2006
Substance Use and Substance Use Disorders among American Indians and Alaska Natives
Sponsoring organization: Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration
Presents findings of the National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH), which surveyed American Indians and Alaska Natives, 12 years and older, to collect data regarding substance use and substance use disorders.
Date: 01 / 2007
Organizations
Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium (ANTHC)
Tribal organization
Works to provide the highest quality health services for all Alaska Natives. A Native American Research Center on Health.
American Indian & Alaska Native (AI/AN) Epidemiology Centers
Federal government
Works to improve the health and well-being of AI/AN populations through a variety of activities including surveillance for disease conditions, epidemiological analysis, interpretation, and dissemination of surveillance data, investigation of disease outbreaks, and more. Supported by an Indian Health Service and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention partnership.
American Indian Higher Education Consortium (AIHEC)
Tribal government
Represents 34 tribal colleges in the U.S. and Canada through advocacy, research, and program initiatives.
AoA Native Americans, Native Alaskans, & Hawaiian Natives Program
Federal government
Coordinates federal activities, administers grants, and collects and disseminates information related to the problems of older Native Americans. U.S. Department of Health & Human Services' Administration on Aging (AoA) program.
Association of American Indian Physicians (AAIP)
National organization
Dedicated to pursuing excellence in Native American health care by promoting education in the medical disciplines, honoring traditional healing practices and restoring the balance of mind, body, and spirit.
HHS Office of Minority Health (OMH)
Federal government
Serves as a national resource and referral service on minority health issues. Part of the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services.
Indian Health Service (IHS)
Federal government
Provides federal health services to American Indians and Alaska Natives. Works to raise the physical, mental, social, and spiritual health of American Indians and Alaska Natives to the highest level. Part of the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services.
Indians Into Medicine Program (INMED)
Academic/Research
A University of North Dakota academic support program aiding American Indian students in their quest to serve the health care needs of native communities.
Inter Tribal Council of Arizona American Indian Research Center for Health (AIRCH)
Academic/Research
Encourages practical research to improve American Indian peoples' health status. A Native American Research Center on Health site.
National Center for American Indian and Alaska Native Mental Health Research (NCAIANMHR)
Academic/Research
A minority mental health research center focused specifically on American Indian and Alaska Native populations. Sponsored by the National Institute of Mental Health and located at the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center Department of Psychiatry.
National Child Traumatic Stress Network: Center for Rural, Frontier & Tribal Health (NCTSN-CRFTH)
Academic/Research
Assists rural, frontier, and Tribal communities in the treatment of child traumatic stress through technology-augmented resources.
National Indian Council on Aging (NICOA)
National organization
Works to better the lives of the nation's indigenous seniors through advocacy, employment training, dissemination of information, and data support.
National Indian Health Board (NIHB)
Tribal organization
Strengthening tribal management capabilities in health and human service delivery.
National Indian Women's Health Resource Center (NIWHRC)
National organization
Provides training, advocacy, and programs to assist American Indian and Alaska Native women achieve optimal health and well being throughout their lifetime.
National Resource Center on Native American Aging (NRCNAA)
National organization
Works closely with the local service providers throughout the nation to address the needs of American Indian, Alaskan Native and Native Hawaiian elders.
National Society for American Indian Elderly (NSAIE)
Tribal organization
Provides small grants to tribal member organizations to support a variety of programs for American Indian elders to address nutrition, transportation and other services. Currently, there are 237 tribal senior programs in the United States.
Native American Research Centers on Health (NARCH)
Academic/Research
Federally-funded research centers that conduct research and research training responsive to the needs of American Indian and Alaska Native communities.
Native American Research Training Center (NARTC)
Academic/Research
Conducts research and training projects to help improve the quality of life for Native Americans with disabilities. Serves as a national resource for Native American communities and people working with Native American populations, especially those with chronic diseases or disabilities.
Northwest Portland Area Indian Health Board (NPAIHB)
Tribal organization
Works to assist Northwest tribes to improve the health status and quality of life of member tribes and Indian people in their delivery of culturally appropriate and holistic health care. A Native American Research Center on Health site.
Special Education Program for Teachers and Administrators (SEPTA)
State/regional organization
Works to develop and implement a comprehensive Special Education training program that enhances the professional development of Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) and BIA grant school personnel.
U.S. Senate Committee on Indian Affairs
Federal government
Holds jurisdiction to study the unique problems of American Indian, Native Hawaiian, and Alaska Native peoples and to propose legislation to alleviate these difficulties.
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